The Mad Women's Ball
Author: Victoria Mas
Published by: Penguin Books
Pages: 216
Format: Paperback
My Rating ★★★★★
Published by: Penguin Books
Pages: 216
Format: Paperback
My Rating ★★★★★
The Salpetriere asylum, 1885.
All of Paris is in thrall to Doctor Charcot and his displays of hypnotism on women who have been deemed mad or hysterical, outcasts from society. But the truth is much more complicated - for these women are often simply inconvenient, unwanted wives or strong-willed daughters. Once a year a grand ball is held at the hospital. For the Parisian elite, the Mad Women's Ball is the highlight of the social season; for the women themselves, it is a rare moment of hope.
Genevieve is a senior nurse. After the childhood death of her sister, she has shunned religion and placed her faith in Doctor Charcot and his new science. But everything begins to change when she meets Eugenie, the 19-year-old daughter of a bourgeois family. Because Eugenie has a secret, and she needs Genevieve's help. Their fates will collide on the night of the Mad Women's Ball...
All of Paris is in thrall to Doctor Charcot and his displays of hypnotism on women who have been deemed mad or hysterical, outcasts from society. But the truth is much more complicated - for these women are often simply inconvenient, unwanted wives or strong-willed daughters. Once a year a grand ball is held at the hospital. For the Parisian elite, the Mad Women's Ball is the highlight of the social season; for the women themselves, it is a rare moment of hope.
Genevieve is a senior nurse. After the childhood death of her sister, she has shunned religion and placed her faith in Doctor Charcot and his new science. But everything begins to change when she meets Eugenie, the 19-year-old daughter of a bourgeois family. Because Eugenie has a secret, and she needs Genevieve's help. Their fates will collide on the night of the Mad Women's Ball...
My thoughts:
The Mad Women's Ball is an accomplished debut touching on the dreadful situation that many women found themselves in without good reason. It is a highly addictive story that I enjoyed reading in just two sittings. It is a tale that fully absorbs you until the very last sentence.
Genevieve is a respected nurse who works closely with the renowned Dr. Charcot. The Dr. uses the patients as test subjects, claiming to be able to resolve and cure their hysteria and 'madness', and Genevieve has no reason to distrust the practice.
Eugenie is committed to the asylum by her father after admitting her secret to him and it is this secret that breaks Genevieve's misplaced perceptions.
The story unfolds slowly, each chapter revealing further information which leaves the reader shocked at the events being played out on the pages. We learn that the inpatients have been committed to the asylum as they are either unwanted wives, prostitutes, or inconvenient females.
There is also an intriguing paranormal element that makes this story even more captivating. Eugenie can see and correspond with the dead. Of course, when she confides this secret to someone, she is locked away. Geneviève, the senior nurse, is her only way out of the asylum, but Geneviève doesn’t believe in any religion let alone ghosts. The interesting relationship between Geneviève and Eugenie kept me reading. Both main characters were relatable and likeable in their own ways. Seeing how and if these two with conflicting beliefs can come together made this novel such a page turner.
This book’s strength lies in the portrayal of the story’s women and the shocking truth of how easy it is for a man to have a woman placed in an asylum. Even more horrifying for me was how the women became objects. This is especially powerful in the awful spectacle of dressing up the women in costumes to be paraded around in front of Paris society at the ball.
The story ultimately leads up to the most anticipated annual ball. The women look forward to the dance every year for a chance to feel normal, when really, they are being made into a spectacle for the guests coming from the outside. It is truly heart-breaking to see how they turn these women into an exhibition.
The Mad Women’s Ball is an extremely dark, captivating and utterly original work of gothic historical fiction set against the backdrop of nineteenth-century Paris. This book is a brilliant debut and a powerful historical novel. Very impressed.
Overall reaction:
The Mad Women's Ball is an accomplished debut touching on the dreadful situation that many women found themselves in without good reason. It is a highly addictive story that I enjoyed reading in just two sittings. It is a tale that fully absorbs you until the very last sentence.
Genevieve is a respected nurse who works closely with the renowned Dr. Charcot. The Dr. uses the patients as test subjects, claiming to be able to resolve and cure their hysteria and 'madness', and Genevieve has no reason to distrust the practice.
Eugenie is committed to the asylum by her father after admitting her secret to him and it is this secret that breaks Genevieve's misplaced perceptions.
The story unfolds slowly, each chapter revealing further information which leaves the reader shocked at the events being played out on the pages. We learn that the inpatients have been committed to the asylum as they are either unwanted wives, prostitutes, or inconvenient females.
There is also an intriguing paranormal element that makes this story even more captivating. Eugenie can see and correspond with the dead. Of course, when she confides this secret to someone, she is locked away. Geneviève, the senior nurse, is her only way out of the asylum, but Geneviève doesn’t believe in any religion let alone ghosts. The interesting relationship between Geneviève and Eugenie kept me reading. Both main characters were relatable and likeable in their own ways. Seeing how and if these two with conflicting beliefs can come together made this novel such a page turner.
This book’s strength lies in the portrayal of the story’s women and the shocking truth of how easy it is for a man to have a woman placed in an asylum. Even more horrifying for me was how the women became objects. This is especially powerful in the awful spectacle of dressing up the women in costumes to be paraded around in front of Paris society at the ball.
The story ultimately leads up to the most anticipated annual ball. The women look forward to the dance every year for a chance to feel normal, when really, they are being made into a spectacle for the guests coming from the outside. It is truly heart-breaking to see how they turn these women into an exhibition.
The Mad Women’s Ball is an extremely dark, captivating and utterly original work of gothic historical fiction set against the backdrop of nineteenth-century Paris. This book is a brilliant debut and a powerful historical novel. Very impressed.
Overall reaction:
